Elder Xie also saw his granddaughter coming and waved her over with a smile. The cousin's grandmother took Xie Yun's hand and exchanged pleasantries.
"Yun'er, have you ever seen Master Cheng Lang? He's truly a handsome man with a very elegant demeanor. You'd definitely like him if you met him. There are countless girls in the capital who want to marry him!"
Xie Yun didn't say anything.
After Xie Yun said nothing, Xie Ge Lao continued, "I've invited Cheng Lang to our home. He's waiting in the front hall, being received by your father. Come with me to see him."
Xie Yun raised her head. She had rarely experienced setbacks in her life. None of the boys in her family were as smart as her. Her parents and brothers doted on her. Her aunt was the queen, and she loved her the most. She had been with her aunt since she was a child, gaining experience and knowledge. She knew a thousand words by the age of three, could read the Analects of Confucius by the age of five, and could study with her grandfather by the age of eight.
She took a deep breath. Since her grandfather insisted that she meet him, then she would meet him.
She went with her grandfather to the front hall.
Cheng Lang was sitting on a royal chair, drinking tea and chatting with her father in a gentle and cheerful manner. When she heard the voice, she turned around and glanced.
Xie Yun looked at him, and for some reason, she suddenly recalled the day she first saw him in Xinqiao Hutong. He emerged from the shadows, the warm yellow light of the lanterns illuminating his face, a handsome, elegant figure. She had truly never seen anyone more beautiful than herself, and couldn't even imagine a woman who could stand beside him. Even if it weren't for Luo Shenyuan, this man would still be quite remarkable.
Cheng Lang caught a glimpse of the edge of Xiang Qun's aquamarine skirt embroidered with orchids, which was exposed from under the screen.
Marrying that man was no longer possible. She knew her dirty thoughts, and he almost took her by force. It would be difficult for her to treat herself normally. Cheng Lang knew very well that those extravagant hopes and infatuations of a young man could only be suppressed in his heart, and he didn't know when they would break out again.
An indulgent sneer appeared at the corner of his mouth.
Xie Yun didn't want to marry him? Then he had to marry her anyway. He had many ways to deal with such a woman.
*
After the Naji ceremony, the Duke of Yingguo's Mansion became more and more lively. Shortly after Lord Xu went back, the betrothal gifts prepared by Luo Shenyuan were carried into the Duke of Yingguo's Mansion from Fuxue Hutong.
The total amount of the betrothal gifts was 40,000 taels of silver.
Wei Ling studied the betrothal gift list for a long time before bursting into laughter, exclaiming, "What a wonderful son-in-law!" Even though the Luo family was wealthy, they were a family of officials, and their finances were much more limited. It was unclear how he could come up with the 40,000 taels of silver. He must have been prepared. However, when he brought Yining back home years ago, he gave Luo Chengzhang a 50,000 tael silver note as a token of his affection. I wonder if it's included in this. That's 50,000 taels, definitely not a small sum for the Duke of Ying.
Wei Ling called the housekeeper in, and before the housekeeper even entered the room, he said directly: "Add the lady's betrothal gift list to the dowry, and let Zhenzhu carry it with her. I will tell her after she gets married." He wanted to give the girl a surprise. When she got married, she would see the betrothal gift list and know how good her father was.
The housekeeper, who had just entered the room, almost tripped over the threshold and stammered, "Duke, doesn't the young lady's dowry add up to 70,000 taels?"
"Is it a lot?" Wei Ling said with a smile.
It was simply too much! And looking at the Duke's expression, he seemed very proud of receiving such a large betrothal gift from the Luo family. The housekeeper wiped his sweat and asked, "Duke, is the foundation of our Duke of Ying still there?"
Wei Ling raised his eyebrows. "What are you talking about? Your family's Duke is marrying off my daughter, and I can't give her a little more dowry?" He only has this one girl, who else can he give her to? Thinking that she will soon be the daughter-in-law of another family, and once married, she will have to serve her parents-in-law and take care of the affairs of the whole family, Wei Ling still couldn't bear to let her go.
Dowry is like a backbone. The more dowry, the straighter the backbone. What's more, they have Luo Chengzhang in their family.
Wei Ling felt that he should talk to Luo Chengzhang.
Yi Ning also looked at the betrothal gift list and thought that her third brother was getting a huge loss. She only gave 20,000 taels, but he wanted 40,000 taels. Luo Chengzhang was always stingy, and he would definitely be upset if he knew about it.
She ate the newly-coming autumn pears and told her maid to go find Ting'er and bring him back to eat the pears.
Just then Songzhi came over to report, "Miss, Madam Luo Er and the wife of the Duke of Dingbei are here to visit. They just went to the old lady's place and are heading towards us."
Lin Hairu and her elder sister are here! Yining hadn't seen them for a long time, so she quickly asked the maid to invite them in.
When Lin Hairu came in, she was holding Nan Ge'er and smiled as soon as she saw Yining.
Yi Ning wanted to hug Nan Ge'er and tease him, but Nan Ge'er, who was almost a year old, was very shy. He was not used to the Duke of Ying's mansion and hid in Lin Hairu's arms, pursing his lips. Yi Ning saw his rosy cheeks were soft and she kissed him. He quickly hid in Lin Hairu's arms, not daring to look at Yi Ning.
"This child is timid," Lin Hairu said. "He takes after his father's temperament. His father said he was like that when he was little."
Yi Ning, however, was quite fond of children's shyness and wanted to tease them whenever she saw it. She held Nan Ge'er in her arms. Nan Ge'er didn't cry or make a fuss, but he clung to Yi Ning's clothes, refusing to move. After a while of teasing, he calmed down and softly called Yi Ning "Sister," repeatedly.
Lin Hairu said, "Call her sister, now it's time to call her sister-in-law." She tried to persuade Nan Ge'er to change his tone, but Nan Ge'er insisted on calling her sister, looking at his mother blankly, as if he didn't understand why his mother told him to call her sister-in-law.
Luo Yihui looked at him and smiled, then turned her head to talk to Yining: "I just discussed it with your grandmother, and with your third brother's opinion, the wedding date is set for the eighth day of September."
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